A/N: Thanks to everyone that's been reading and reviewing! Let's meet Jacob Black…

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The light was dim out by the water, but I could still make out Jacob's form pretty well – more from the glow of the moon than anything else. His features were dark, like the rest of the Quileutes, yet defined. At this moment, the most defined thing about his entire face was the glare that he wore.

"You've got a lot of guts coming down here, Bella."

"I was invited," I defended lamely, steeling myself against his onslaught.

"I'm aware," Jacob retorted. "Mike told me. I didn't think you'd actually show up though."

"Are you saying that I'm unwelcome?"

He just shrugged. "You said it, not me. Does Daddy Dearest even know you're here?" I chose not to answer that particular question and Jacob scoffed. "He doesn't, does he? And those cronies of his? Do you have them scratching their heads too?"

"No one knows I'm here," I spat. It was probably the wrong thing to say, but I didn't want Jacob thinking that I was simply some puppet of my father's. I couldn't stand that idea – it made me physically ill.

Jacob's eyebrows shot up at that comment. "Gone rogue, have you, Swan? It's about time."

"I haven't gone rogue either," I whispered fiercely. "And would you keep your voice down? People are going to hear us."

"Good. I hope they do," he replied quickly. "People deserve to know. You might be paying my father to keep his mouth shut, but that doesn't apply to me. I'm free to do what I want."

"Well then do it away from me." I turned to leave, but Jacob wasn't having any of it. He quickly grabbed my wrist and spun me back around, causing my heart rate to spike and a tremor to sweep down my spine.

"Where are you going?" His eyes danced as he looked down at me. We were much closer now. "We weren't done talking yet."

"I have nothing to say to you." I stared daggers at him.

"Tough."

I snatched my hand away from him but didn't move again. Fine. If Jacob had things to say to me, then he could go ahead and say them.

"How is your father these days?" He asked, catching me slightly off-guard. "Is he still destroying lives left and right?"

"He's fine." I chose to ignore the latter part of Jacob's question.

"Yeah I'm sure you're all fine over there at Sham Corp. Rolling in dough that you've made at the expense of others."

I shook my head. I didn't want to hear this. I didn't need to be reminded.

"Pathetic," Jacob continued. "You can't even defend them because you know it's true. Your father is a life-ruining piece of shit."

"Don't talk about my father that way!" I snapped, curling my hands into fists. I was quickly tiring of his abuse.

"I'll say whatever I want," he said icily, dropping his head closer to mine and hardening his glare. "My father can't even get a job now ever since he was fired from your father's company. Charlie saw to that. He ruined everything."

"That's not my fault."

"It is by association. With Charlie and that entire agency." Jacob crossed his arms defensively and shook his head in what can only be described as disgust. "The people that work for him are just as despicable as he is. Especially those Cullens."

I froze; unprepared for this line of attack. Where was Jacob going with this? I tried not to let my uneasiness show.

"Carlisle Cullen single-handedly destroyed my father's career, you know," he said coldly. "All of the work that my dad put into that company was overlooked when that bastard fired him. I'm glad he's dead. I threw a fucking party the day I found out. He deserves to rot in hell."

"Shut up! Just shut up!" Alice was right. I did want to punch Jacob Black. Badly. I had to physically restrain myself from throttling him. The worst part was that he was laughing at me. Jacob knew that he'd gotten to me. I couldn't let him talk about Carlisle that way though. I wasn't allowed to punch him, but Alice didn't say anything about shoving him. So I did just that. I pushed Jacob Black with everything that I had and, to my surprise, he actually stumbled back a bit.

"You shut your mouth, Jacob Black. You don't know what you're talking about," I said fiercely.

"And you do?" He seemed almost amused.

I shook my head, trying to clear it, and took a few steps away from him. If I were being honest with myself, I'd have to sort of agree with Jacob. Did I really know what I was talking about? No one ever told me anything. But still, I couldn't just let Jacob say those things about the people I loved.

"That's my family you're talking about."

He scoffed. "The Cullens are not your family."

"Well they're as good as! And that is my father you're talking about, so you'd be wise to keep your mouth shut."

"Ohh, scary. I'm shaking in my boots over here, Bella."

I hated him. I hated him with every fiber of my being. There were parts of Swan Corp. that were morally and ethically wrong, yes. I had always known that. Did I know the ins and outs of them? No. But there wasn't a whole lot that I could do about that. So I had to go on faith. And I had faith in my father. And Edward. And Jasper. And Emmett. And all of the others at Swan Corp. who risked their lives every day. I had faith that they were inherently good people. Sometimes good people could do bad things. I was born into this, though. It was never a choice for me. I had to play with the hand that I was dealt.

"You're nothing more than a child, Jacob," I said lowly. "Your words are exceedingly petty."

"Are they? Really? I'm not that much younger than you, Bella. But the sad part is, I think that I know a lot more."

"You don't know anything." I may have been overreaching here, but I had to stand up for myself somehow. I couldn't just let Jacob Black walk all over me.

"I think it's time for you to go, Bella." His words were cold and venomous.

"Funny," I spat. "I was just about to say the same exact thing."

Without another word, I marched back up the beach through the sand, looking around for Jessica. My mind was spinning. That conversation with Jacob had left me in a daze and I wasn't sure what to make out of many of the things that had been said.

After scanning the beach for a few minutes, I finally found Jessica, still huddled close to Eric Yorkie's side.

"Hey, Jess," I said loudly, coming up beside her.

"Bella! There you are!" She threw her arms around me and I stumbled under her weight.

"Everything okay over here?" I asked her, inclining my head towards Eric.

Jess nodded fiercely and giggled. "Oh! You don't have to drive me home anymore. Eric's got it covered."

"Are you sure?" I asked, worried. "Is he okay to drive?"

"Ease off, Swan." I looked up at Eric, who had inserted himself into our conversation. His arm snaked around Jessica's waist. "I've got her." To his credit, he didn't seem drunk.

He took a step closer towards me, shifting Jess behind him. "Unless, of course, you'd like to take her place. In which case, I'd be happy to drive you." He ran his hand down my arm and I immediately slapped it away, irate.

"Don't touch me!" I snarled. Eric and his friends burst into laughter. That was it. I had had it with this party. Alice was right. Edward was right. Fucking everyone was right. I should not have come. "You're disgusting. Every last one of you." With that, I spun around and practically ran to my car. I felt like I was going to explode.

Once I was safely inside and had the doors locked, I leaned my head back against the rest. With my eyes closed, I tried to slow my breathing down. I was practically panting at this point. The intensity of everything had gotten me really worked up.

It felt good to be away from the party and the noise. I could still see the fires in the distance and the sound of laughter floated my way occasionally. Other than that, it was dark and quiet. Peace at last.

I tried to think back over my conversation with Jacob, but everything was so muddled. I hated the nagging feeling in my gut that I could not dismiss everything that he said – some of it required further thought. I just couldn't figure out exactly what.

Giving up, I stuck the key in the ignition and my car revved to life. After getting out of the parking lot, I floored it – needing to get as far away from the beach as possible. I didn't go home though. Instead, I just drove, leaving the windows down and allowing the cold air to calm and soothe me as I drove along the Puget Sound. The roads were dark and deserted, but that didn't surprise me. It was quite late – I'd been at that party longer than I realized.

My fingers began to go numb from the cold, but I didn't care. My body was numb already – it had been that way since I left La Push. I just couldn't get a hold of myself.

At some point – I'm really not sure how much later – I made my way back to the house. What I saw in the driveway, however, caused me to panic.

Cars. Lots of them. They were back. Oh no.

Pulling out my phone, I saw that I still had no missed calls or messages. Maybe they didn't know…that seemed unlikely though. My fire engine red car's absence was usually pretty obvious. Edward would notice.

Edward. The thought of him caused my blood pressure to spike yet again. He would definitely notice that I wasn't home. And if he called Alice…

This was a disaster. With a resigned sigh, I pushed the car door open and made my way up the stone walk. The front door was unlocked, but I found an empty foyer behind it. I stood there for a minute, listening. I couldn't hear anything though. Most likely that meant that everyone was still in Charlie's office. The walls were soundproof.

Throwing my bag aside, I raced up the stairs and down the hall into my bedroom.

I felt jittery and uncomfortable – like I'd just downed six cups of coffee. I needed to purge myself of this disastrous night.

Without even turning the lights on, I pulled off my clothes and walked into the bathroom. The hot spray of the shower was relaxing and the lack of light was therapeutic. I didn't want to look at myself right now. I stood under the water for a long time, allowing it to wash off every last, uncomfortable detail of the night. I wish it could wash away everything permanently, but I knew that that was an impossibility.

At last, I got out of the shower and scrounged up some flannel pajama pants and an old T-shirt. My room was still dark and empty. I wondered where Edward was or if he'd even be able to come and see me tonight. I knew that he was here – I'd seen his stupid, shiny Volvo in the driveway.

After turning on my small bedside lamp, I crawled into the middle of my large bed and sat Indian-style facing the door. The lamp didn't flood the room with light by any means and I enjoyed the fact that parts were still dark. Even the illuminated spaces were dim.

My hair was still pretty wet and I could feel water dripping down my back and neck. I ignored it though. Also, despite the heat of the shower, I was cold again. That probably had something to do with the fact that my windows were open, but I didn't want to close them. I needed the air – I craved it.

I don't know how long I sat there waiting. I couldn't think straight. I desperately wished that I knew what was wrong with me, but I couldn't figure it out. All I knew was that I did not feel like myself, but I wasn't sure what was off. I sat there on my white comforter, fidgeting. I'm not sure how long it was before Edward finally came in.

He didn't knock and the sound of the door creaking open was so faint that I could barely hear it. Once he was inside the room, Edward closed the door behind him and leaned back against it. He had yet to look at me, but I could tell. He knew what I had done – where I had gone. His demeanor was one of disapproval and anger. I sat there, waiting for his wrath, but it never came. We were swathed in silence for some time. It was beginning to make me uncomfortable.

"Edward?" I whispered. After a few seconds, he finally turned his head toward me. His eyes were cold though – not the emerald pools of warmth that I preferred. It felt like he was looking through me, not at me. I could feel a knot forming in my throat as a new sensation crept into my gut. I wanted to cry.

"I went to First Beach," I squeaked, unable to stand the silence any longer. I knew that he knew this already, but saying it aloud seemed to make it more concrete.

"I know." Edward still hadn't moved an inch. The fact that he hadn't started yelling yet unnerved me.

"I'm sorry," I said, simply because I really didn't know what else to say. I wasn't all that sorry, in reality.

"Why?"

"Because!" I threw my hands up, growing weary of his odd reactions. "You told me not to go! I lied to you, Edward. I looked straight into your eyes and lied to you. Alice even told me not to go. She –"

"I knew you were going to go, Bella," he interrupted softly.

That threw me. "Huh?"

Edward pushed away from the door with a sigh and finally walked closer to me. "How many times do I have to tell you that you're an awful liar before you finally believe me?" I blushed at that. "Did you really think your over-used distraction techniques would work on me yesterday?" He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. "Come on, Bella. A little more respect, please."

"So you knew the whole time?" I asked dumbly, unwilling to believe him. Edward simply nodded. "But…why didn't you try to stop me?"

Edward finally moved to sit down on the edge of my bed, much to my relief. He turned to face me but didn't look at me. He still seemed distant. "I may be a lot of things, Bella," he began, "but – as you pointed out before – I'm not your father, thank God for that. I can't control what you do, and frankly, I don't want to. Am I upset that you went? Yes. Angry that you lied to me? Yes. But surprised? No, I'm not surprised. Your stubbornness is always something that I can rely on."

"But…" I didn't even know what to say. Edward had let me put myself in danger? Well okay, it wasn't really all that dangerous, but it was still something that he didn't approve of. He had known this whole time and just let me go gallivanting off, feeling like a rebel. Now I just felt kind of stupid. Like when a little kid runs away for the first time, only to find out that their parents knew about it called ahead to the neighbors before he or she even got there.

I fidgeted, unsure of where to go from here. "So you're not mad?"

"I wouldn't go that far," he amended. "But I'm probably not as mad as you think I am. Besides, you're back safe and sound. Looks like I didn't need to worry as much as I did after all." He offered up a weak grin.

I couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't stand the space between us – even a few millimeters of air was too much. I launched myself at him, practically pushing him off of the bed. He managed to remain seated somehow, but my actions definitely surprised him. My whole body began to shake as I clung to him, ducking my head into his shoulder.

"Bella?" Edward was running his hands all over me, like he was checking me for damage. "What is it? What's wrong? Why are you trembling?" I pulled back to look at him. His eyes were wide and held the same concern that his voice did. I tightened my arms around his neck, trying to get as close as possible. Edward shifted me in his arms, but still held me tightly.

"I'm so sorry, Edward. It was awful – you were right. I shouldn't have gone; it was a mistake. Jacob Black…" I didn't even know what to say about him. I just shook my head.

Edward froze at the name and his eyes narrowed. "What did he do? I'll kill him."

I shook my head quickly. "He didn't do anything really. But what he said."

Edward didn't answer immediately. His hands ran soothing motions up and down my back, trying to lull me into peace. "What did he say, Bella?"

"Just…horrible things about Charlie and Swan Corp. and you." I couldn't bring myself to tell Edward what Jacob had said about Carlisle. Then Edward probably would kill him. I didn't even know if I could actually bring myself to repeat the words, they were so repulsive. "He just said a lot of things that I couldn't respond to…I didn't know what to say."

"Did he hurt you?

"Not physically."

"Words can hurt too, Bella."

I sighed. "Well then yes, he did. He just…he was so angry, Edward."

Edward didn't respond, but he pulled me closer, resting his forehead on my shoulder. I ran my fingers through his coppery hair, drawing comfort from the familiar feel and smell of Edward. I finally felt like I was warming up now that he was here with me.

"What are you thinking?" I whispered. He didn't answer me, but I felt him shake his head. "Edward?"

"I'm sorry he did that to you," Edward rasped.

"It's not your fault," I assured him.

"Isn't it?"

"No!" I cried, pulling back slightly so that I could look into his eyes. "Don't you dare blame yourself for this, Edward. I'm the stupid one. I'm the one that went down there. You told me not to and I did it anyway. This is all my fault, not yours."

"I'm supposed to protect you, Bella."

"And you do," I replied, stroking his cheek. He looked so sad. "But you can't protect me all the time. It's impossible." He shook his head as if to say 'that's not good enough'. Alright, it was time to lighten the mood. I couldn't have Edward being a Debbie Downer anymore. "Hey Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

Edward grinned and kissed the top of my nose. "You're alright," he whispered. I laughed and pulled him closer, pressing my lips firmly against his.

Edward wasted no time pushing me back against the pillows by my headboard and moving to lie in between my legs. He was kissing my all over and I reveled in the feeling of Edward surrounding me, consuming me.

"Wait." I put my hands up to his chest and he pulled back immediately, but his eyes still danced. Their spark was back.

"What is it?"

"Why are you home so early?"

"We didn't need to be there any longer," he replied, dipping his head to press soft kisses against my neck. My eyes fluttered shut and it was hard for me to pay attention. "I pressed Charlie to make the trip back, even though it was late. The drive isn't too long. And I needed to see you. Alice kept saying that you were fine. But I was worried."

"Alice," I muttered sourly. "So she was in on this too?"

Edward chuckled against my neck and the humming sensation tickled. I squirmed underneath him.

"Not until a few hours ago. I called her and told her, but she assured me that you were okay." I laughed, remembering the premonition that Alice had shared with me yesterday. "What is it?" Edward pulled back to look at me.

"Yesterday, Alice warned me not to punch Jacob Black in the face."

His eyes widened momentarily. "Did you?" I shook my head. "Did you want to?" When I nodded, Edward grinned. "That's probably a good thing."

"Oh?" I raised my eyebrows curiously.

"Well no offense, Bella, but you hit like a girl."

I giggled at that. I'd probably punched, hit, and smacked Edward more than I had anyone else. Visions of me 'abusing him' played through my head like a montage.

"Watch it, Cullen," I warned playfully, rolling us so that I was straddling him. "Maybe I've just been holding back this whole time. I wouldn't want to hurt you."

"I'd like to see you try." Challenge accepted.

I leaned down and kissed him gently. He rested his hands on my sides and I shivered. It wasn't from the cold though. It was all Edward now.

I rocked my hips against him teasingly and he let out a sharp breath, raising an eyebrow at me. I giggled, leaning down to capture his lips again. "Can I welcome you home now?" I whispered, dragging my fingers through his hair.

"I was hoping you would."

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Later, Edward and I lay tangled up in each other under the covers of my bed. I rested my head on his chest as he traced soothing patterns up and down my arm.

"I missed you," I whispered, kissing his collarbone.

"Clearly," Edward replied throatily, chuckling.

"Hey!" I smacked him, but there was no force behind it. He laughed again and kissed my forehead.

"Don't worry, I didn't mind."

I sighed. "You are so immature."

He scoffed lightly in response. "You're really one to talk, Bella."

"Excuse me?" I lifted my head off of his chest to show him my raised eyebrows. Edward immediately groaned.

"Oh God, I'm retracting that statement. You're not immature at all, Bella. You're a classy, mature, intellectually stimulating woman and you fascinate me," he corrected with a smirk. Clearly, Edward wasn't in the mood to argue with me.

I snorted at this and rolled my eyes. "Nah, I can be pretty immature sometimes," I agreed with a grin. "Sometimes."

My cordless phone rang a moment later, startling me. Edward laughed, holding me close.

"Always so jumpy," he said with a grin. "Who is calling you at two o'clock in the morning?"

That was a good question. Only a handful of people had the number for the personal line to my room, and one of them was currently in bed with me. I shrugged, reaching over him to grab the phone off of my nightstand.

"Hello?" I asked, holding the phone up to my ear.

"Bella?"

"Jess? What's wrong?"

She sniffled on the other line. "Can you come get me?" She asked, sobbing.

I sat up quickly, fear pulsing through me. I shouldn't have left her. God, I'm such an idiot. "What's wrong? Where are you? What happened?"

I could hear her crying on the other line. "Eric took me back to his house and…and…". She trailed off, crying again.

I felt my eyes burn as terror gripped me. "Jess, what happened?" I asked slowly, fearing the worst.

"Nothing! I just…I left and he was so angry and…I don't know where I am. I can't call my parents. All I know is that I'm walking down this fucking street and it's cold and it's creepy and I just want to go home!" She was yelling so loudly that I had to practically hold the phone away from my ear. A fresh round of sobs started as soon as she was done, though.

"Bella?" I turned to look at Edward. His eyes were filled with confusion and slight concern as he reached out a hand to comfort me. "What's wrong?" I held up my hand, signaling him to wait. He sighed impatiently.

"Jess, what street are you on?"

"I don't know!"

"How the hell am I supposed to come get you then?" I asked loudly, angry and upset. This was all my fault. I'm a horrible person. Sure, Jess was a shitty friend sometimes, but she was still my friend and I just left her at that party with a bunch of assholes.

"Stop yelling at me!" She was getting defensive now.

"Stop yelling at me!" Two could play that game.

Edward snatched the phone away from me with a look. "Both of you stop yelling! You're being ridiculous."

"Who is that?" I could hear Jessica's voice through the phone, even though Edward was holding it. He brought it up to his ear.

"Jessica, what's the name of the street you're on?" He asked calmly, patiently.

"Who is this?"

"This is Edward."

"Oh." Silence.

"Jessica?"

"Hmm?"

"The street name?"

"Oh! Hang on, hang on. I'm almost to the corner. Umm…it's the corner of Baylor and Irvine." She seemed very pleased with herself for being able to relay that information.

"Alright. Just stay where you are and we'll be there soon, okay? Call Bella's cell phone if anything happens. Don't move."

"I called her cell phone before and she didn't answer," Jessica said suspiciously.

"She'll answer next time," Edward assured her, the corner of his mouth turning up.

"Promise?"

"I promise."

"Okay."

Edward pressed the 'end' button and placed the phone back in its cradle, looking at me strangely as he got up and searched for his pants. I followed him slowly, but opted for jeans and a t-shirt instead of my previous outfit. It was too late to be anything even remotely close to stylish. I searched for my phone but quickly realized that I had left my bag downstairs when I'd gotten home and forgotten about it. Well that would explain me not answering…

I waited patiently for Edward as he buckled his belt.

"Where's Charlie?"

"Asleep," he replied confidently, taking my hand and leading me down the hallway. "You can explain all of this to me when we get to the car."

Splendid.

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A/N: Was that an awkward place to end it? Sorry. Stuff actually starts going down next chapter, so get excited for that. I'm sorry if this story seems like it's going slowly and you're confused as to the direction it's going to take, I've just been trying to build foundations and all that jazz. I promise some excitement in the next chapter.

Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think!